Some

This,

2840. Poultry-houses are generally slight structures for rearing and feeding domestic fowls. Beatson (Com. to the Board of Agr. vol. i.) is of opinion, that poultry ought always to be confined, but not in a close, dark, diminutive hovel, as is often the case; they should have a spacious airy place, properly constructed for them. people are of opinion, that each sort of poultry should be kept by itself. however, is not, he says, absolutely necessary; for all sorts may be kept promiscuously together, provided they have a place sufficiently large to accommodate them conveniently, and proper divisions and nests for each kind to retire to separately, which they will naturally do of themselves. Wakefield of Liverpool keeps a large stock of turkeys, geese, hens, and ducks, all in the same place: and although young turkeys are in general considered so difficult to bring up, he rears great numbers of them in this manner every season, with little or no trouble. For this purpose he has about three quarters, or nearly a whole acre, enclosed with a fence only six or seven feet high, formed of slabs set on end, or any thinnings of fir or other trees split and put close together. They are fastened by a rail near the top and another near the bottom, and are pointed sharp, which he supposes prevents the poultry flying over; for they never attempt it, although so low. Within this fence are places slightly constructed (but well secured from wet) for each sort of poultry; also a pond or stream of water running through it. These poultry are fed almost entirely with steamed potatoes, and thrive astonishingly well. The quantity of dung made in this poultry-place is also an object worth attention: and when it is cleaned out, a thin paring of the surface is at the same time taken off, which makes a valuable compost for the purpose of manure. But for keeping poultry upon a small scale, it is only necessary to have a small shed or slight building, formed in some warm, sheltered, sunny situation (if near the kitchen or other place where a constant fire is kept so much the better), with proper divisions, boxes, baskets, or other contrivances, for the different sorts of birds, and for their laying and incubation.

2841. Where a few poultry, taking their chance at the barn-door, are kept by the farmer for the convenience of eggs, and to supply the table when a fowl is wanted, no particular attention is requisite; but as, in some situations, they may pay well for more food and closer attention, other circumstances may be noticed. "contain an apartment for the general "The poultry-house should," Young says, stock to roost in, another for setting, a third for fattening, and a fourth for food. If the scale is large, there should be a fifth, for plucking and keeping feathers. If a woman is kept purposely to attend them, she should have her cottage contiguous, that the smoke of her chimney may play into the roosting and setting rooms; poultry never thriving so well as in warmth and smoke; an observation as old as Columella, and strongly confirmed by the quantity bred in the smoky cabins of Ireland. For setting both turkeys and hens, nests should be made in lockers that have lids with hinges, to confine them if All must have access necessary, or two or three will," he says, "in sitting, crowd into the same nest.

to a gravelled yard, and to grass for range, and the building should be near the farm-yard, and have clear water near. Great attention should be paid to cleanliness and whitewashing, not for appearance, but to destroy vermin."

2842. The interior arrangement of a poultry-house for a farm-yard is generally very simple, and consists of little more than a number of spars reaching across the building at different heights, or at the same 415

d

height, with a gangway or ladder attached, for the fowls to ascend: but where comfort and cleanliness are studied, a preferable mode is to form a sloping stage of spars (fig. 415. a, b) for the poultry to sit on; beneath this stage may be two ranges of boxes for nests (c, c); the roof (d) should have a ceiling to keep the whole warm in winter, and the door (e) should be nearly as high as the ceiling for ventilation, and should have a small opening with a shutter at bottom, which, where there is no danger from dogs or foxes, may be left open at all times to admit of the poultry going in and out at pleasure, and especially for their early egress during summer. The spars on which the clawed birds are to roost should not be round

and smooth, but roundish and roughish, like the branch of a tree. The floor must be dry, and kept clean for the web-footed kinds.

2843. The rabbitry is a building of rare occurrence in agriculture, and where it is required differs little from the piggery; consisting of a yard for exercise and receiving food, and a covered close apartment, connected, for repose, sleep, and the mothers and young. In the latter are generally boxes a foot or more high and wide, and divided into compartments of two or more cubic feet for the rabbits to retire into, and bring forth their young. Where young rabbits are fed for the market, the mother and offspring are generally confined to hutches, which are boxes a little larger than the common breeding boxes, and kept in a separate apartment. In treating of the rabbit (Part III), these and other contrivances for the culture of this animal will be brought into notice.

2844. The pigeonry is a structure not more frequent than the rabbitry, being scarcely admissible in professional agriculture, except in grazing districts, where the birds Sometimes they are made an have not so direct an opportunity of injuring corn. ornamental appendage to a proprietor's farmery, or to a sheep-house in a park (fig. 416.), or other detached building; and sometimes a wooden structure, raised from the ground on one post or more, is formed on purpose for their abode. Whatever may

be the external form, the interior arrangement consists of a series of boxes or cavities, formed in or against the wall, generally about a foot high and deep, and two feet or less long: one half of the front is left open as an entrance, and the other is closed to protect the female during incubation. (See Pigeon, Part III.)

2845. The apiary is a building or structure seldom wanted, except to protect hives from thieves; then a niche or recess in a wall, to be secured in front by two or more iron bars, is a simple and effectual mode. Sometimes apiaries are made ornamental (fig. 417.), but the best bee-masters set little value on such structures, and prefer keeping their bees detached in single hives, for sufficient reasons. These hives may be chained to fixed stools in Huish's manner. (See Bee, Part IV.)

SECT. II. Buildings as Repositories, and for performing in-door Operations.

2846. Buildings for dead stock and crop occupy a considerable portion of the farmery, and include the barn, granary, straw and root-houses, cart-sheds, tool-house, harnessroom, and, when farming is conducted on a very extensive scale, the smiths' and carpenters' work-rooms.

2847. The corn-barn, or building in which corn is contained, threshed, and cleaned, has undergone considerable change in form and dimensions in modern times. Formerly

it was in many cases made so large as to contain at once all the corn grown on a farm; and in most cases it was so ample as to contain a great portion of it. But since the mode of forming small corn stacks became more general, and also the introduction of threshing machines, this description of building is made much smaller. The barn, especially where the corn is to be threshed by a machine, is best placed on the north side of the farmery, as being most central for the supply of the straw-yards, as well as the stables and cattle-sheds. In this situation it has also the best effect in an architectural and picturesque point of view. (fig. 418.) Suppose an octagonal form chosen for a farmery, with the barn (1), straw-room and granary over (2), and mill-shed (3), to the north; then on the left of the barn may be the stable for work-horses (4), and riding-horse stable (5), cattle-house (6), cow-house (7), sick horse (8), sick cow (9), cattle-sheds (10), cart-shed (11), boiling and steaming house (12), root-house (13), chaff and other stores for steaming, or mechanics' work-shop (14), piggeries (15), poultry-house and rabbitry (16). The yard may be divided in two by a wall running north and south, with a pump, well, or other supply of water in the centre (17). rick-yard (27) should be to the north of such a farmery, for easy conveyance to the barn: the main entrance (28) should be from the south, opposite the dwelling-house; side entrances (26) should lead to different parts of the farm and to the main roads of the country, and there should be ponds (25) for washing the horses' feet and for the poultry. The same accommodations may be arranged in a square or circular outline. (fig. 419. and 420.)

The

2848 The English corn-barn, in which a large quantity of corn in the straw is to be contained, and threshed out with flails, may either be constructed on wooden frames covered with planks of oak, or be built of brick or stone, whichever the country affords in the greatest plenty; and in either case there should be such vent-holes, or openings in their sides or walls, as to afford free admittance to the air, in order to prevent the mouldiness that would otherwise, from the least dampness, lodge in the grain. The gable-ends are probably best of brick or stone, on account of greater solidity; the whole may be roofed with thatch or tiles, as either can be more conveniently procured. It should have two large folding-doors facing each other, one in each side of the building, for the convenience of carrying in or out a large load of corn in sheaves; and these doors should be of the same breadth with the threshing-floor, to afford the more light and air; the former for the threshers, and the latter for winnowing. Over the threshingfloor, and a little above the reach of the flail, poles are often laid across from one beam to another, to form a kind of upper-floor, upon which the thresher may throw the straw or haulm, to make an immediate clearing, till he has time to stow it properly elsewhere: and on the outside, over the great doors, it is sometimes convenient to have a large pent-house, made to project sufficiently to cover a load of corn or hay, in case a sudden storm should come on before it can be housed; and also to shelter the poultry in the farm-yard in great heat or bad weather. It was formerly the custom in countries that abounded in corn to have separate barns for wheat; for spring-corn, such as barley and oats; and for peas, tares, lintels, clover, saintfoin, &c.; but where the grain can be stacked, the heavy expense of so many buildings of this kind may be avoided. On no description of farm buildings has so much needless expense been incurred as on barns. The most ostentatious in England are those on Coke's estate in Norfolk; they are built of fine white brick, so large and unscientifically constructed that they cannot be filled with corn from the fear of bursting the side walls.

2849. The threshing-floor, or space on which the grain is threshed out by the flail, is an important object in the English barn. It is for the most part made in the middle of the building; but may be laid down in any other part, if more convenient, and should always be so formed as to be perfectly close, firm, and strong. In constructing these kinds of floors, various sorts of materials are employed, such as compositions of different earthy kinds, stones, lumps, bricks, and wood. The last substance, when properly laid and put together, is probably the best and most secure from damp. When made of wood, they are sometimes so contrived as to be movable at pleasure, which is a great convenience in many cases: they are made of different dimensions, but from twelve to fourteen by eighteen or twenty feet are in general proper sizes for most purposes.

2850. Threshing-floors in Gloucestershire, Marshal observes, are of a good size, when from 12 to 14 by 18 to 20 feet. The best are of oak, some of stone; but a species of earthen floor, which is made there, is thought to be superior to floors of stone, or any other material, except sound oak-plank. The superior excellency of these floors is owing in part to the materials of which they are formed, and in part to the method of making them. In order to this, in some places, the surface of the intended threshing-place is dug away to the depth of about six inches, and the earth thus taken out, when of a proper kind, after being well cleared of stones, is mixed with the strongest clay that can be procured, and with the dung of cattle. This mixture is then worked together with water, till it is of the consistence of stiff mortar, and the compost thus made is spread as smooth as possible with a trowel, upon the spot from which the earth was taken. As it cracks in drying, it must be frequently beaten down with great force; or rolled with a heavy roller until all the crevices are filled up: and this must be continued till it is quite solid, hard, dry, smooth, and firm.

2851. Boarded threshing-floors, made of sound, thick, well seasoned planks of oak, are excellent for service, will last a long time, and may be converted into good floorings for rooms, by planing them down, after they are become too uneven for the purpose originally intended.

2852. Earthen threshing floors should not be advised, except where good materials can be procured, and the making of them be performed in the most perfect manner, which, as we have noticed (2550.) is only the case in particular instances and districts

2853. Brick floors, when well laid down, may, in some cases, make a tolerable floor for many purposes, but on account of their not only attracting, but retaining, moisture, they are not to be recommended where grain of any kind is to continue much upon them.

2854. In constructing wooden floors the most usual mode is that of nailing the planks, or boards of which they are composed, after their edges have been shot true, and well fitted and jointed, close down to wooden joists or sleepers, firmly placed and secured upon the ground, or other place for the purpose. But in the midland districts, instead of the planks being nailed down to sleepers in the ordinary way, the floor is first laid with bricks, and the planks spread over these, with no other confinement than that of being "dowled" together, that is, ploughed and tongued, and their ends let into sills or walls, placed in the usual way, on each side of the floor. By this method of putting down the planks, provided the brickwork is left truly level, vermin cannot have a hiding-place beneath them; and a communication of damp air being effectually prevented, floors thus laid are found to wear better than those laid upon sleepers. It is observable that the planks, for this method of laying, ought to be thoroughly seasoned. It is evident, however, that where barn-floors can be made hollow, they must be much better for the purpose of threshing upon, than such as are either placed on brick-work, or the ground. From their greater pliability and elasticity in threshing upon, the grain is of course threshed out with more ease, certainty, and despatch.

2855. The threshing-mill barn is not restricted to any size; but it answers best when the ground-plan is a parallelogram, the width from twenty to thirty feet, according to the size of the machinery, and the height from fifteen to twenty feet, in order to allow one winnowing machine, or even two, to be placed under the threshing part of the machinery. The barn in this case is in three distinct divisions: the first, for the unthreshed corn, should be of such a size as to contain an ordinary stack, and, if possible, it should be so contrived as to be entered by a loaded cart; which, whether the corn be threshed as carried in, or be laid up for future operations, is a great saving of labour. The second division contains the machinery and the corn floor, and should be enclosed with boards so as to be locked up when not in use. The third division is the straw-barn, which should be so large as to admit of keeping separately a considerable quantity of different kinds of straw, accessible for fodder and for litter.

2856. The hay-barn is commonly constructed of timber, and sometimes is open on the south or east, or even on all sides. In Middlesex, there are many hay-barns capable of holding from thirty to fifty, and some even one hundred, loads of hay. They are found to be extremely useful and convenient during a catching and unsettled hay-harvest, and also at other seasons of the year. In wet and windy weather, they afford an opportunity of cutting, weighing, and binding hay; none of which operations could, at such a time, be performed out of doors. Most farmers agree that hay may be put together earlier, even by a day, in a barn, than it would be safe to do in a stack. They advise, however, that the sides of the mow should be raked or pulled clear of the quartering of the barn; and, when thus managed, they are of opinion that the hay will be as good in the barn as in the stack. In the driest seasons, barns are a saving; and, in wet seasons, the ready assistance which they afford, in speedily securing the hay, has been known to make a difference in price of twenty shillings per load. Many persons, on the other hand, think hay is more apt to heat in a barn than in the open air; and that they present no advantages which may not be obtained by the canvass stack-cover. If they do not possess considerable advantages, then the loss must be great, as the erection of such barns is a heavy expense.

2857. The granary, in barns with threshing machines, is sometimes formed immediately above the floor on which the machine works; which, among other advantages, admits of raising the corn to it directly from the ground-floor, either by the threshing-mill itself, or a common windlass easily worked by one man. When it is to be taken out and carried to market, it may be lowered down upon carts, with the utmost facility and despatch. There is evidently no greater expense incurred by this arrangement: for the same floor and height of side walls that must be added to the barn, are required in whatever situation the granary may be; and it possesses several advantages. Owing to its being higher than the adjacent buildings, there is a freer circulation of air, and less danger of pilfering, or of destruction by vermin; the corn may be deposited in it as it is dressed, without being exposed to the weather, while the saving of labour is in most cases considerable.

2858. The construction of the agricultural granary has in it nothing particular; being, in fact, only a well ventilated room, where corn is seldom kept more than a month or two, and generally in sacks. 2859. A detached granary often forms a part of farmeries on a small scale: they should be built with firmness, and well secured from the entrance of vermin. In order to effect the latter purpose, they should be raised, by means of stone pillars, about eighteen inches or two feet, and have a frame of some durable wood, with quarterings of timber, so placed as that they may be filled up closely with brickbats, and the inside made secure by being lined with thin boards nailed firmly to the different pieces of quartering. The floors must be made firm, close, and even the outside may also be covered with boarding, if it be thought necessary, and the roof well tiled. There may be different floors or stories, according to the room required.

2860. Of commercial corn granaries, some of the most extensive are in Dantzic. They are seven, eight, or nine stories high, having a funnel in the midst of every floor, to let down the corn from one to another. They are built so securely, that, though every way surrounded with water, the corn contracts no damp, and the vessels have the convenience of coming up to the walls for their lading. The Russians in the interior of the empire preserve their corn in subterranean granaries, of the figure of a sugar-loaf, wide below, and narrow at top; the sides are well plastered, and the top covered with stones. They are very careful to have the corn well dried before it is laid into these store-houses, and often dry it by means of ovens, their autumn being too short to effect it sufficiently.

2861. A granary to preserve corn for many years should be a dry cellar, deeply covered with earth; and, after the corn is put in, hermetically sealed to exclude heat, air, and moisture, and preclude the possibility of the grain vegetating, or of the existence of insects or vermin, or the hatching of their eggs, (See 1834.)

2862. The root-house is used for storing up or depositing potatoes, turnips, carrots, cabbages, or other roots or tops for the winter feed of cattle. It should always join the cattle-sheds, and communicate with them by an inner door that opens into the feeder's walk by the heads of the cattle. The entrance door ought to be so large as to admit a loaded cart. These houses are essentially necessary wherever there are a number of cows, or other sorts of cattle, to be supported on roots of the carrot, parsnep, turnip, and potato kinds, as well as for cabbages; as without them it would not only be inconvenient, but in many cases in severe weather impossible, to provide them for the daily supply of such stock. Cabbages should not, however, be kept long in houses, as they are very apt to take on the putrid fermentation, and become useless. The master should be careful

that the yard man constantly keeps such places perfectly clean and sweet, in order that the roots may contract no bad smell, as cattle are in many cases extremely nice in their feeding, and when once disgusted with any sort of food, seldom take to it again in a proper manner.

2863. The steaming-house should be placed next the root-houses, for obvious reasons; and have an inner floor communicating with it in a line with the door of the feeder's walk.

2864. The straw-house or straw-shed, when there is one distinct from the barn, should be placed at the end of the cattle-sheds, opposite to the root-house, and like it should have a cart entrance, and an inner door communicating with the feeder's walk. Straw, however, is often stacked, in preference to placing it in a straw-house, especially when large quantities of corn are threshed at one time.

2865. Cart-sheds, or lodges for the shelter and protection of carts or waggons, and

421

other large implements, are generally built close on three sides, with the fourth open, and the roof supported with posts or pillars. Sometimes they are open on all sides (fig. 421.); but this admits too much wind, which carries moisture with it in the cold seasons of the year, and dries up and shrinks wooden articles in summer. Their situation in the square should be apart from the buildings for live stock, and also from the barn, straw, and root houses: generally the first part of the east or west side on entering is devoted to the purpose of cart-sheds and tool-houses.

2866. The tool-house is used for keeping the smaller implements used in manual labour in the fields, as spades, rakes, forks, &c. It is essential that this apartment be dry and free from damps; and, when convenient, it should have a loft for the better preservation of sacks, cordage, sowing sheets, baskets, spare harness, &c.

2867. Some other buildings, besides those of this and the preceding section, will be wanted in most farm-yards of any extent, as stables for young horses, riding-horses, an hospital stable, &c. Particular descriptions of farms also require appropriate buildings, as dairies, cheese-rooms, hop-kilns, and wood-lofts, which will be considered in treating of dairy farms, hop culture, the management of sheep, &c.

2868. Sleeping-rooms for single men should be made over the stable, and for the feeder or cow-keeper over the cattle-sheds, that they may hear any accident which takes place among the horses or cattle during the night, and be at hand to remedy it.

2869. A smithy, and carpenter's work-room, sometimes form part of the buildings on a large farm. Instead of going to a distance to the residence of these necessary mechanics, arrangements are made with them to attend at stated periods, or when sent for, by which a saving both of time and money is effected. Sometimes these buildings are set down at a little distance from the square, to prevent danger from fire, and lessen the expense of